


light as a feather (caught in between)

by crikeymikey123 (Who_the_hell_is_Tre_Cool)



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Bird Hybrid Philza, Bird Hybrid TommyInnit, Dream Smp, Enderman Hybrid Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Family Fluff, Found Family, Fox Hybrid Wilbur, Gen, Goat Hybrid Toby Smith | Tubbo, Hybrids, Philza is Dadza, Piglin Hybrid Technoblade, Ram Hybrid Jschlatt, THEY'RE A FAMILY YOUR HONOUR, They/Them Ranboo, no beta we die like l'manburg :], so ig kidfic, they're also children
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-17 00:21:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28965288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Who_the_hell_is_Tre_Cool/pseuds/crikeymikey123
Summary: “Hello?” Tommy says, cautiously approaching.The creature startles, dropping its stick and looking up at him, meeting his eyes.  Its jaw drops, emitting a rather timid version of the enderman screech he sometimes hears at night. It doesn’t teleport away, instead, it just averts its gaze back to the ground.“My name’s Tommy,” Tommy introduces himself, not sure what else to do. “What’s your name?”This time, the screech the creature lets out is full power. And with a ‘vwoop’, it’s gone.
Comments: 18
Kudos: 479
Collections: Completed stories I've read





	light as a feather (caught in between)

**Author's Note:**

> hi hello this is my first work for this fandom woah (but somewhere near my 60th fic ever so i rlly have no excuse). I'm not too sure how the tagging system works for dsmp fics, but i tried my best :]
> 
> this fic is loosely inspired by [this comic i saw on instagram](https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ7EBWLsRwC/) (there's a few parts, but I linked the first one i saw. you should definitely check out the artist). 
> 
> you can find me on instagram [here](https://www.instagram.com/crikey._.mikey/) and tumblr [here](https://mastasof-ravenkroft.tumblr.com/)
> 
> okay enough self promo, on with the fic
> 
> (work title from glitter and crimson, by all time low)

Delighted shrieks fill the air as the two young hybrids clash, wooden swords clattering together. The younger of the two is beaming, revealing missing front teeth, as he stumbles backwards. It’s his fifth birthday, and as is tradition in the small, patchwork family, he’d received a wooden sword. And as is the nature of the youngest child, he’d instantly challenged both his older brothers to a duel, although only one of them agreed.

The elder of the pair is also grinning, although slightly more composed, his swishing fox tail the only sign of his pent up energy. He’s the least competitive out of the three, but that doesn’t mean much in their family.

“See Tommy, you can block like this, and make me drop my weapon,” the elder tries to explain the way their dad taught him. Tommy stubbornly refuses to be demonstrated on.

“Techie says the best d- uh, defence is a good offence!”

Wilbur sighs. Of course he does. Even the seven year old knows that Technoblade, their eldest brother (only by three years, Wilbur always reminds people,) loves to fight things. Maybe Wilbur just listens to their dad more, but he can’t imagine how much Tommy and Techno will clash once they’re older.

Eventually, Tommy grows bored, as most young children are inclined to after more than an hour as a particular game. He manages to slot his sword into the place on his belt, even though it knocks against his knee each time he takes a step. He then wanders off further into the woods, hopping between boulders and fallen logs, using his wings for balance. Wilbur follows, because he’s sort of bored too, and the pair of them chase each other around for a little while, pretending to be monsters and such.

Before they know it, the sun is starting to set, and the woods don’t feel quite so fun.

Wilbur draws his sword, although he can’t do much. Tommy copies him, although he’s gripping the back of Wilbur’s jumper tightly as they make their way home.

They can just make out the light of their house when the grumbling zombies and clattering skeletons start to get a bit too close for comfort. There’s a ‘vwoop’ noise, and Tommy yells in surprise, the pair of them stumbling backwards so as not to bump into the creature that suddenly appeared in front of them.

Wilbur doesn’t know too much about all the different monsters. He tries his best to pay attention when Philza tells them stories and tries to teach them, but it gets boring after a while.

He knows endermen teleport, but this creature doesn’t look like any of the photos Phil had shown them. Tommy’s grip tightens on his jumper as the creature turns to look at them.

It’s small for an enderman, just barely taller than Wilbur. Maybe a child? He doesn’t know. It’s also a different colour to endermen, well, half of it is. One half of its skin (and hair?) is black, purple particles clinging to it. The other half is white.

“Wilby? What’s that?” Tommy mumbles, hiding himself behind Wilbur. His wings are tucked tight against his back, and he’s put his sword away in favour of grasping at Wilbur’s fluffy tail for comfort.

Before Tommy can answer, a familiar piglin hybrid bursts through the undergrowth, brandishing his stone sword.

“Tommy! Wilbur! Get back, don’t look it in the eye or it’ll attack you!” Technoblade yells, slashing at the creature with his sword.

Wilbur guides Tommy back, slowly retreating towards the house. Techno slashes his sword, and the creature lets out an unearthly screech. But instead of attacking, it just disappears with another ‘vwoop’ sound.

Techno corrals the pair of them back towards the house, where Philza is waiting for them. Tommy instantly runs into his arms, clinging to him. Wilbur is less enthusiastic, but let’s Phil pull him into the hug.

“Oh my boys, I was so worried. Are you hurt at all?” He pulls away, and once he’s brought them both inside and patched up any injuries, he gets his stern face on. Tommy instantly starts talking.

“We didn’t mean to dad! We were just playing an’ then it was night-time!”

And because he knows Tommy won’t say it, Wilbur adds, “We’re really sorry. We won’t do it again.”

Phil just sighs, because he’s their dad and knows that this is a lie, but he seems to accept the apology.

“Alright, dinner time, and then off to bed with you.”

###

Wilbur nearly sighs when he feels Tommy crawl into bed with him later that night. He doesn’t, but it’s a close call.

“Wilby,” Tommy whispers, or tries to. He still hasn’t quite grasped the concept yet. “Wilby! You ‘wake?”

He groans, swatting at the fingers jabbing at his sides, fluffy ears twitching in annoyance.

“What do you want?”

“A story! Tell me a story!” Tommy crows, and Wilbur shushes him.

He adjusts his position, letting Tommy snuggle into his side. “What story do you want?”

“I wanna know about the nendermen!”

“Endermen,” Wilbur corrects, because at seven years old he’s already the definition of smartass. “Why don’t we go see if Techno has some stories, cuz I don’t know any.”

“Yay!”

Tommy bounces to his feet, unfairly taking Wilbur’s blankets with him, instead of just grabbing his own. Wilbur begrudgingly gets up too, allowing Tommy to drag him across the hall to Techno’s room.

“What do you want?” Techno grumbles, as the door creaks open. Unperturbed by his usual attitude, Tommy bounds over, jumping into the bed and landing on Techno’s thighs, making him let out a grunt of surprise.

“Tell me a story about th’ endermen!” Tommy demands, and Wilbur just shrugs, slipping into bed next to Techno. He’s tired, really, but as much as he pretends to be annoyed, he doesn’t really want to hurt Tommy’s feelings.

Techno huffs. “Alright, you menace. But you gotta settle down to sleep, else Dad’ll get angry.”

“He won’t!” Tommy declares confidently, but crawls under the covers in between them anyway, his wings folding awkwardly until Wilbur helps him arrange them. Thankfully, they’re only small, unlike Phil’s wings that are the same size as his body, and then some. Tommy has enough trouble navigating with them as is.

“Alright. I’ll tell you about the endermen. The reason they’re so scary is because they’re not from this world, not like the zombies and the skeletons.”

“Are they from the nether, like you?” Tommy interrupts.

Techno rolls his eyes. “No, they’re from a different dimension, called the End. A barren wasteland of yellow stone, with floating islands. It’s guarded by a massive dragon, almost impossible to defeat. But if you do slay the dragon, portals appear, and you can travel through the entire dimension, see all of the endermen’s homes and their war ships.”

“But how do they get here?” Tommy interrupts again, eyes wide.

“Hey, you wanted a story, so you’d better shut up and listen.”

Tommy huffs, but shuts up, snuggling into Wilbur’s side more. Wilbur’s half asleep already, not really listening to Techno’s story.

“Endermen can teleport. That’s how they get between worlds. It’s also how they get around in our world. If you kill them, you can sometimes manage to get an ender pearl, which can allow you to teleport. But it hurts for humans, and most half humans, to use them. Their teleportation means they’re hard to fight. Luckily, they’re mostly passive. But if you look them in the eye, they will hunt you down and kill you.”

“Don’t scare him Techie,” Wilbur mumbles, stroking in between Tommy’s wings to calm him down.

Predictably, Tommy objects. “I’m not scared!”

“Uh-huh,” Techno hums, not sounding convinced.

Tommy shakes his head stubbornly. “Do they burn in the day time like the other monsters?”

“No, endermen can come out in the daytime, they just don’t like to as much. The only thing that truly keeps them away is rain. Water burns their skin, so they hide when it’s raining.”

Tommy frowns. “That’s sad. Imagine not being able to splash in the puddles!”

Techno huffs out a laugh. “Go to sleep Tommy. You two better stop coming into my room. You hog all my blankets.”

Giggling, Tommy curls around Wilbur. “Night night Techie.”

“G’night Tommy.”

###

Tommy finds comfort in the woodland over the next few years. He learns how to fight off mobs better, how to identify berries that are safe to eat, how to climb trees and throw himself between the branches in a way that gives Philza a heart attack but Wilbur thinks is incredibly fun.

He’s out by himself, since he’s finally old enough to not need supervision (as long as he doesn’t go further than the river), when he catches sight of something peculiar, and yet so familiar.

The air around the creature is static with purple teleportation particles, and a little voice in his head that sounds suspiciously like Techno warns him to be careful. But the creature doesn’t look like a normal enderman. It’s small, skin and hair split in half, white and black. It’s crouching below a tree, jabbing at the dirt with a stick. Drawing.

“Hello?” Tommy says, cautiously approaching.

The creature startles, dropping its stick and looking up at him, meeting his eyes. Its jaw drops, emitting a rather timid version of the enderman screech he sometimes hears at night. It doesn’t teleport away, instead, it just averts its gaze back to the ground.

“My name’s Tommy,” Tommy introduces himself, not sure what else to do. “What’s your name?”

This time, the screech the creature lets out is full power. And with a ‘vwoop’, it’s gone.

It takes about a month for Tommy to meet the creature again, and he tries once more to befriend it. The creature doesn’t seem mean, just scared.

The creature doesn’t seem keen on being his friend though.

Time after time, he approaches it, asks its name, feels like he’s getting somewhere, but then he’s left staring at purple dust.

But Tommy is stubborn. It’s his best quality (no matter what Wilbur says), and he’s decided to befriend this creature. Because, secretly, he thinks it might be lonely. He sees plenty of mobs gathering together, the enderman are smart. But this creature is always alone, at least whenever Tommy sees them.

Tommy’s not stupid ( _no matter what Wilbur says_ ), he knows that hybrids aren’t normal. He knows that their little family is strange. He’s done his research, as much as he can at least, and he thinks that if human/mob hybrids are real, then maybe mob/mob hybrids are real too.

Maybe the creature is only half enderman.

So he finds himself in the woods once again, and immediately heads towards the tree where he usually finds the creature. As normal, the creature is there, crouched down, drawing in the dirt. Tommy thinks even that might be a sign of progress, that the creature lets itself be found.

“Hello,” he greets cheerfully, not expecting a response. He throws himself down on the ground, a small distance away from them, and pulls out the notepad he’d taken from Wilbur’s room, along with the pack of crayons from his own supplies. “I brought you these, since you’re always drawing in the dirt. Thought you might like them better.”

He sets the items down in the space between them, sneaking a glance at the creature. They look surprised, eyes wide. They have different eyes to an enderman, one green and one red, instead of purple.

Hesitantly, they take the notepad and crayons, before retreating back a little. Tommy smiles reassuringly, but keeps his eyes down. Progress.

“I want to be friends with you, because you’re different to other mobs. But that’s okay, cuz I’m different too, see,” he flutters his wings a little to demonstrate. “My whole family is different. My dad likes to adopt kids who need help. Mostly hybrids. My brother Wilbur, he has an awesome fox tail and ears and if you scratch them he melts, but he doesn’t like when people do that. And my other brother, Techno, he’s part piglin! He likes to pretend he’s super scary, but he’s a big softie really.”

Tommy looks over, and realises that while he’s been talking the creature has written something on the first page of the note book, and is now holding it out to him.

There’s something in what looks like a different language, weird shapes that Tommy doesn’t recognise, but underneath, in big, block letters, it says ‘RANBOO’.

“Ranboo? Is that your name?” Tommy asks, and the creature nods. For the first time since they met, the creature- Ranboo- smiles.

Tommy smiles back.

“Ranboo is a cool name. Are you a boy or a girl? I keep calling you an ‘it’ but that feels mean now,” Tommy frowns a little.

Ranboo frowns as well, although Tommy isn’t sure if they’re feeling an emotion or just mirroring him.

They seem to think for a little while, before opening their mouth.

“No.” Their voice is strange, sounds like it’s coming from two places at once.

“No?”

“No.” They nod, but they look timid again.

Tommy thinks for a moment, before shrugging. “That’s cool.”

And before he can say more, Techno calls him in for dinner, loud voice startling Ranboo into teleporting away.

They take the notebook with them.

###

It’s raining the next time Tommy finds himself exploring the woods, so he doesn’t expect to see Ranboo.

He’s incredibly surprised, then, when he finds them waiting under a tree, closer to the path.

They look distressed, and immediately let out a screeching noise when they see Tommy, running over and grabbing the sleeve of his raincoat, ignoring the blistering burns the water leaves on their skin.

“Tom-my!” They call out, tugging him down the path instantly. “Need help!”

Tommy frowns. “Help? With what?” He then tugs his sleeve out of their grasp and tugs his coat off, handing it to them. “Put my coat on so the rain doesn’t hurt you.”

Ranboo accepts the coat quickly, only needing a little assistance to get the hood up. It doesn’t cover all of them, but it keeps the worst of the rain off.

As soon as Ranboo is covered, they start tugging on Tommy’s sleeve again, leading him deeper into the woods down a path he hasn’t walked before. The unfamiliar scenery makes him nervous, but he finds himself trusting them. They said they needed help. He wants to help.

“Tom-my help,” Ranboo says, coming to a stop.

There’s a box under a tree, with a blanket in it, and as Tommy approaches the blanket shuffles, before a head of brown hair pops up, small horns just poking through the hair and fuzzy ears sticking out from either side of his head. It’s a boy, not much younger than Tommy. He looks cold, and miserably.

“Hello, I’m Tommy. This is Ranboo,” Tommy introduces them. “Who are you? Why are you in a box?”

The boy frowns, drawing his knees up to his chest and clutching his blanket close. It’s yellow, patterned with bees.

“Dad said to wait for him.” The boy speaks. His voice is soft, slightly shaky.

Ranboo makes a soft sound, the little grumbly noise Tommy hears from endermen sometimes. They sound sympathetic. The kid in the box lets out a surprised bleat, ears trembling.

“What’s your name?” Tommy asks again, because he’s not sure what else to do.

“Tubbo.”

Tommy hums, “Well, I’m gonna go get my dad. He’s nice, maybe you can stay with us for a bit, just until your dad comes back. Ranboo, will you stay with him?”

Ranboo nods, smiling, and Tubbo’s eyes widen in fear. Tommy is quick to reassure him.

“It’s okay! Ranboo’s not a evil mob. They’re a hybrid like us. They’re nice.”

Not looking calmed at all, Tubbo nods. For once in his life, Tommy decides not to push, and instead starts running back home. He’s annoyed his wings aren’t big enough to carry him yet, but he can run pretty quick, even in the mud.

“Dad! Dad!” He yells as he slams open the door to the house.

Philza appears from the kitchen, looking worried. “What’s wrong Tommy? And where’s your coat?”

“There’s a kid in the woods and he says his dad told him t’ wait but I don’t think his dad’s coming back and he’s cold and- and-”

Phil puts a hand on Tommy’s shoulder. “Slow down buddy. There’s a kid in the woods? Why don’t you lead the way, we’ll make sure he’s safe.”

Tommy nods and grabs Phil’s hand, dragging him through the woods in much the same way Ranboo had dragged him. Speaking of the enderman, Ranboo isn’t there when they reach the tree, but Tubbo is, looking all sad and dejected in his box.

“Oh, love,” Phil sounds sad, and he kneels down, scooping Tubbo into his arms, blanket and all, leaving the damp, crumbling box behind. Tubbo is shaking, trembling from the cold, and he lets out a feeble bleat. Phil responds with a soft chirp, the same sound he uses to calm Tommy when he has a nightmare, and the three of them start making their way back up to the house.

Techno and Wilbur are waiting at the bottom of the stairs when they get home, looking worried. The worry increases when they spot Tubbo in Phil’s arms.

“Techno, go run a bath. Wilbur, can you grab some clothes and a towel please.” Phil commands gently, setting Tubbo down in one of the chairs in the kitchen, while he sets about lighting the fire to help him warm up.

Tommy takes the chair next to him, swinging his legs so he kicks Tubbo’s chair every few seconds. Unlike Wilbur, Tubbo doesn’t get mad. He just smiles shyly and hooks their ankles together.

Once Tubbo has warmed up a bit, Phil takes him upstairs and helps him with the bath, so that he’s properly warm. He then gets wrapped up in one of Wilbur’s incredibly soft jumpers and guided to Tommy’s room.

Tommy’s in bed by then, but he’s sat up with the lights on, wings fluttering anxiously. He’d been excited to finally have his own room, once Wilbur got older and started sharing with Techno instead, but he finds himself not minding having Tubbo as a roommate. Even if they have to share a bed for the first night.

The ram hybrid is pretty cuddly, clinging to Tommy as soon as he can. Tommy doesn’t mind, happy to cuddle back, being mindful of Tubbo’s little horns.

Phil kisses them both on the forehead, before turning out the light and leaving them to sleep.

###

“Hey there buddy,” Phil greets the child sat on the stairs. Tubbo startles, but smiles when he turns round and see’s it’s him.

It didn’t take Tubbo long to adjust to his new living situation, which Phil is thankful for, although the ram hybrid is still (understandably) upset that his dad hadn’t come back for him. Sometimes Phil overhears the two youngest boys talking late at night. He’s considered telling them to go to sleep, but then it becomes clear that Tommy is comforting Tubbo, and he doesn’t want to take that away from them.

“Hi Phil,” Tubbo responds, a little timid.

“What are you doing hanging out on the stairs?”

Tubbo shrugs. “Tommy’s talkin’ to Wilbur, said it was a secret. So I’m waiting for them to come back.”

Upstairs, Tommy has dragged Wilbur into his room, rocking on his heels impatiently.

“Wilby I gotta tell you a secret, but you can’t tell dad, and you definitely can’t tell Techie.”

Wilbur raises an eyebrow, slightly confused but mainly curious. Tommy’s not known for keeping secrets, he’s a bit of a loudmouth, unless it’s something super duper important. And even then, there’s half a chance he’ll forget and say things accidentally.

“Go on then,” Wilbur says, struggling to keep the intrigue out of his voice.

Chewing his lip, Tommy glances at the door, clearly checking it’s closed, before turning back to Wilbur.

“I befriended a mob! But they’re not a normal mob, they’re a hybrid, like us! And they don’t fit in, like us. And they were lonely. They’re a half enderman but they’re super nice and they’ve never tried to hurt me and! And! They’re the one who found Tubbo, they led me to him cuz they knew I could help.”

Dumfounded, Wilbur stares. Of all the things he was expecting, that certainly wasn’t it.

“You befriended an enderman?”

Tommy shushes him, eyes darting to the door again before back to Wilbur.

“A half enderman! They’ve got one red eye and one green eye and half their skin is black and the other half white and they’re kinda small.”

Wilbur recognises the description instantly. He vividly remembers the incident from years ago, even if Tommy probably doesn’t. Maybe the enderman thing remembers too.

Tommy looks nervous, fiddling with the hem of his shirt, so Wilbur pulls him into a hug.

“Is that all you wanted to tell me? Cuz it’s okay Toms, as long as you’re sure you’re safe.”

“Well...” Tommy mumbles, looking at the floor. “I was thinkin’ of asking dad if they can come stay with us? Cuz they’re a hybrid too, and they don’t have a family with them. They’re lonely.”

“Tommy...”

A voice speaks up from the doorway. “You’re not bringing that creature into this house.”

It’s Techno, looking angry and powerful, and Tommy leans into Wilbur’s side instinctually. But then Tommy juts his chin out and steps forwards.

“They’re not a creature. They’re name is Ranboo and they’re my friend.”

Techno scoffs. “It’s an enderman Tommy. It’s dangerous.”

“Half enderman!” Tommy raises his voice, scowling.

“That doesn’t make it any less dangerous!” Techno matches his tone.

Wilbur speaks up then. “What? Just like your piglin half makes you dangerous?” And Techno visibly recoils.

“Forgive me for trying to look out for my family!” Techno spits back.

“Ranboo is my friend! He led me to Tubbo! He needs a family too!”

“Shut up Tommy!” Techno snaps. “You’re just a stupid kid, how do you know it’s not dangerous?”

Tommy ruffles his feathers irritably, before storming out the room, past Philza who had made it to the top of the stairs when he’d heard the raised voices, past Tubbo, who was still waiting on the stairs, and out the front door.

Ignoring the shout of, “Tommy!” From Wilbur, he made his way into the woods.

###

“Ranboo!”

Ignoring the noises from other, scarier mobs hidden in the darkness, Tommy walks the familiar path towards the tree where Ranboo usually is.

“Ranboo!”

They’re not there when he arrives, so he continues to wander around the area, occasionally calling out their name as he goes.

When he hears the familiar ‘vwoop’ of an enderman’s teleportation, purple particles visible out the corner of his eye, he turns around, beaming-

-only to meet the eyes of a very tall, very scary, actually endermen.

The endermen’s jaw drops and it screams, much more hostile than the noise Ranboo makes, and Tommy screams back, holding his arms over his face and shutting his eyes to shield from the anticipated attack.

But the attack never comes.

Slowly, he opens his eyes and lowers his arms. In front of him stands Ranboo, tail flicking in an agitated manner, chittering at the enderman opposite them. The enderman towers over Ranboo, but they don’t seem bothered. Or maybe they’re just hiding it. Tommy’s too scared to care.

Eventually though, the enderman teleports away, and Ranboo turns around, hugging Tommy tightly.

“Tom-my. Idiot.” They say firmly. Tommy just laughs, still shaken.

“Ranboo!” He announces, once he’s calmed down enough to talk. “I want you to come home with me. I gotta prove to my brother that you’re not evil! And also I want you to stay.”

Ranboo tilts their head. “Stay?”

Nodding, Tommy grabs their hand and starts walking back up the path. “You’re a hybrid. We’re all hybrids. You’ll fit in just fine. And if Techno is a meanie I’ll hit him.”

Ranboo chitters excitedly, although they look a bit embarrassed, so Tommy answers with a chirp that seems to cheer them up.

Philza is waiting by the edge of the woods, looking ready to storm in and hunt down every mob until he finds Tommy. When he sees Tommy approaching, he runs forward, wrapping him up in a hug. Ranboo gets tugged closer, as Tommy refused to let go of their hand.

“Tommy! Don’t run off like that ever again! Especially not a night! I was so worried about you!” Philza steps back, holding Tommy at an arm’s length to check for injuries. It’s only then that he seems to notice Ranboo.

“Oh. Hello there.”

Ranboo tries to make themself smaller, slouching a little as they hide behind Tommy, eyes on the floor.

Phil herds them both inside, Wilbur and Tubbo rushing down to greet them. Tubbo wraps them both in a hug, standing on tip-toes to get his arms around their shoulders. If Phil is surprised at Tubbo’s easy affection with the newcomer, he doesn’t voice it.

They end up in the kitchen, Phil, Tommy, Ranboo, and Tubbo. Techno still hasn’t come downstairs, and Wilbur doesn’t particularly want to stay. It’s fine.

“Tommy, I want you to explain things to me, in full,” Phil says sternly. Ranboo still hasn’t looked up.

So Tommy starts talking, explaining everything from when he first met Ranboo a few years ago, to spending months trying to befriend them. He tells him about the raincoat, about Ranboo leading him to Tubbo, which Tubbo confirms.

“Ranboo?” Phil asks gently, and the enderman’s head shoots up, holding eye contact for half a second before looking away again. “Is it true? Do you need a place to stay?”

Tommy grabs Ranboo’s hand, squeezing reassuringly, and Ranboo nods.

“Family,” they say, pointing to Tommy, and then Tubbo, and then Phil. “Family?” They then ask, pointing to themself.

Phil nods, and Tommy lets out a triumphant yell, wrapping himself around Ranboo quite spectacularly. Tubbo laughs, letting himself be dragged into the hug as well.

Ranboo chitters happily, and Tommy chirps in response, wrapping his wings around them both as best he can.

“Alright you lot,” Phil says, smile obvious in his voice. “Off to bed with you.”

As they’re heading up the stairs, Ranboo mumbles, “Family,” again.

And they’re right.

###

**_Philza,_ **

**_I am a coward who can’t talk to you face to face. But I know you have my son. And I am glad._ **

**_You are a wonderful father, to all your boys, and I know how hard it is to exist in this world as a hybrid. You’ll be a better father than I ever was._ **

**_I know you can give my boy a better life. I’m sorry for dropping him in your care without fully committing, without handing him over in person. I wasn’t strong enough to tell him the truth._ **

**_Thank you._ **

**_-Schlatt._ **

****

Phil reads over the letter a handful of times, before tucking it safely in his ender chest. He had his suspicions, of course, at the sight of Tubbo’s distinctive ears and barely-there horns. But the letter was confirmation.

He’d tell Tubbo, of course, he wouldn’t hide it from him forever. But he didn’t think the child would be able to hand the knowledge at that moment. And besides, they were still helping Ranboo adjust. One worry at a time.

He didn’t feel guilty, even knowing that he was hiding something, because they were all his children, whether by birth or not.

He just wanted them to be happy, and he knew learning the truth about his father before he was old enough to understand would distress Tubbo even more.

Maybe in the future, Schlatt will get better and be able to reunite with his son.

But for the time being, Phil will be the best dad possible.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it!!!
> 
> kudos & comments greatly appreciated (I try my best to respond to all comments)


End file.
